Evil-doer

Full Name

Alias

Origin

Occupation

Powers/Skills

Exceptional mastery of Dark Magic, controls the Nether Mask to assume any form she wants no matter its power, commands legions of monsters

Hobby

Watching over the land under a raven's shape

Goals

Destroy Gladstone and take over the world

Type of Villain

Dark Queen

Scotia is the primary antagonist of the computer game Lands of Lore: The Throne of Chaos. She is a powerful evil witch who rules the Dark Army and strives to take over the world. While she is killed at the end of the game, her actions set into motion the plots of the next two games of the trilogy.

Contents

Background

Scotia's past is not disclosed much in the first game, aside from a mention that she once wished to join the ranks of the Talamari (a group of powerful mages linked to the history of the Kingdom of Gladstone), but failed the tests.

Lands of Lore II: Guardians of Destiny reveals that she used to be an enchantress named Margarithe Fiston, who concealed a strong desire for power and greatness. In her youth, she was infatuated with King Richard LeGrey, but he turned down her advances. She later married a rich land-owner and bore a son, Luther Fiston who would become the primary protagonist of the second game. She was indeed refused among the Talamari, very likely because of the darkness in her soul.

Some years after this failure, Margarithe's husband was killed in a skirmish between the White Army of Gladstone and the demonic Dark Army, made of all the monsters of the Lands of Lore world. Margarithe blamed King Richard and the White Army for this, falsely reasoning that this would never have happened if not for their lax in security. Having lost the only one who could soothe her worst impulses, she immersed herself in the Darkest Arts and rose in power until she became the dreaded witch Scotia.

Castle Cimmeria

Now the Supreme Ruler of the Dark Army, Scotia kept waging war against the White Army. Gladstone Kingdom being the center of the civilized world and the safe haven that kept threats at bay for three generations; if it were to fall nothing could stop her from taking over the entire world. In the meantime, her son Luther, hated and rejected by everyone due to his mother's actions, took shelter in Scotia's lair: Castle Cimmeria. Scotia raised him as her future heir, but he silently disapproved of her thirst for conquest and eventually got away.

Scotia knew full well that she could not defeat the White Army head on, so she spent years gathering her forces. Having learnt about the legendary Nether Mask, a ring of Ancient Magic that grants unlimited shape-shifting abilities, she resolved to get her hands on it and use it to turn the tide. As such, she took control of the Urbish Mines where it was buried and had her monsters dig in search of it.

Appearance

Like every typical evil witch, Scotia is depicted as a hideous old crone, wrinkled, disheveled and deformed, with pointed teeth, large chin, enormous nose, and protruding yellow eyes. She and is almost always seen with only one eye open. She wears simple yet luxurious black robes, adorned with golden trimming. Her hideously twisted aspect, hardly even looking human anymore, is without a doubt due to her evil nature, to the point that no matter what aspects she assumes, her eyes retain a creepy yellowish hue. Yet, she might have looked better in her youth, judging from her son's good looks.

Personality

Like every typical Dark Lord, Scotia is a villain of pure malevolence, cruel, ruthless, collected, menacing, hateful, vindictive, and power-hungry. She treats her foes with scorn even when they prove a match for her, telling them that they will soon grovel at her feet life everyone else in the world. Moreover, she has little patience nor gratitude for her servants, as seen when she vaporizes the one who brought her the artifact she was looking for.

Scotia is very prideful, entitled and demanding. The source of her staunch hatred for Mistress Dawn, Gladstone's court mage, is that she was deemed worthy of joining the Talamari instead of her, despite being much younger. In the same way, she loathes King Richard for spurning her when they were young as much as she hates him for "allowing" the death of her husband (something that he cannot be held responsible for). In short, she holds strong and disproportionate grudges against those who deprived her of what she coveted. When the protagonists can see through her deceit, she angrily lashes out insults and promises to get at them.

Scotia proves to be a very capable army leader, who invades places reputed to be undefeatable and never hesitates to take matters in hand. She takes measures to prevent her foes from gaining artifacts that could foil her, and to hinder their progress as much as possible, and she knows how to do it. She proves skilled in impersonating people to fool their allies or infiltrate their factions. Despite her malevolence, she seems to have remained fond of her son Luther, whom she sheltered and taught to. However, it is strongly implied that she cared about Luther for the heir she was grooming him to be, prompting him to part ways. Furthermore, the fact that she blamed the death of her husband on the White Army instead of the Dark Army, the real culprit she ended up ruling, shows that even back then, hatred clouded her judgment.

Powers and Abilities

One of Scotia's most dangerous spells

Scotia is a highly powerful and skilled witch. In the game, she displays the abilities to raise impenetrable magic barriers, to seal people into orbs, to brew powerful poisons, among others. Her magic makes her a deadly foe, as seen when she vaporizes one of her minions with a flick of the hand, when she casts her version of the Lightning spell, or when she conjures ghastly serpents during the final battle.

Scotia has perfect mastery of the shape-shifting power granted by the Nether Mask. Not only can she assume whatever form she pleases, even something that does not exist, but she gains the abilities of whatever she turns into. As such she can make herself invincible. Scotia most often turns into a raven, to travel and be unnoticed, but she can also turn into a seemingly harmless woman to trick the protagonists.

Role in the game

Scotia holds the Nether Mask

The story begins when Scotia's servants unearth the Nether Mask and bring it to her, prompting her to prepare her forces for a decisive assault on Gladstone Keep. Learning this, King Richard enlists the help of a mercenary to go to the Southern Lands and get the Ruby of Truth (an artifact that can make people see through the Nether Mask’s transformations) from his vassal Roland.

Four distinct characters can be selected between two humans named Michael (the strongest character) and Conrad (a Jack-of-All-Stats), a dracoid (humanoid dragon) named Ak’Shel who specializes in magic, and a Hulin (humanoid feline) named Kieran, weaker but much faster. (The Lands of Lore canon makes Kieran the hero.)

Scotia is first seen under the shape of a raven, spying on Chancellor Geron when he gives the protagonist a pass, but she cannot enter due to the Castle's magic defences. The protagonist later meets Scotia shape-shifted as a young woman, who asks to enter the castle with him and angrily flies away when he refuses. The protagonist travels the sea towards Roland’s domain and is joined by a Gladstonian rogue named Timothy, but they find out that Roland was killed by the Dark Army, who stole the Ruby of Truth.

Dawn reflects back Scotia's Lightning spell

In Gladstone, Scotia manages to sneak in and poisons King Richard. Before she can take the Shard of Truth, complement to the Ruby, on the King's ring, Dawn confronts her and drives her away. Dawn then uses her power, Lord Geron's, the Herbalist Nathaniel’s and the warrior Paulson’s to enshroud King Richard in a force-field, to protect him from both the poison and all exterior threats. Dawn sends the protagonist and her apprentice, the thomgog (four-armed humanoid) Baccata, to the divine Draracle for a cure. Scotia later appears and blocks the way to Yvel Woods with a magic barrier.

The Draracle gives the protagonists a riddle about the Elixir of Tybal that can save King Richard. Alas, they later learn from a dying Timothy that the Dark Army destroyed Gladstone Keep and took the King to Castle Cimmeria. With the White Army defeated and the council members in hiding, only the protagonists can still save the day. They must solve the riddle of the Elixir and gather its four ingredients, before finding the council members and get their four Magic Keys to dispel the force-field, when the time would come to heal the King.

They must get the Ruby of Truth from the lizard-like Gorkhas living in the marshes (who killed the orcs bringing it to Scotia); before obtaining Marsh Water and Hornet Honey, two ingredients of the Elixir. They then show the Ruby to Dawn, who gives them her Key. After killing the Larkon, the nearly-invincible monster that guards the Urbish Mines, they get Stone Blood, the third ingredient, and meet Paulson, who gives them his Key and joins their party. Paulson's Vaelan's Cube must be used to dispel Scotia's barrier.

A second Vaelan Cube is needed to dispel another barrier and reach the city of Yvel, but it also proves extremely useful against the horribly dangerous wraiths of the White Tower, the place where they can make the Elixir. Also, it happens that the Dark Army destroyed the bridge leading to Cimmeria. In Yvel, they can buy the last ingredient, Earth Powder, before returning to the White Tower and make the elixir at last.

Scotia's dragon-like transformation

On their way, they meet Scotia impersonating Dawn (whom she imprisoned in Cimmeria). Scotia states that she will need Dawn's key, if the protagonists give it to her; she breaks her charade and flies away with it. If they refuse, she transforms into a monster and must be fought until she flies away. Be careful though, as she proves very dangerous and can make them drop their weapons. It is possible to exit the woods to escape her.

Upon returning to Yvel, they learn that Lord Geron fled after his Key was stolen. The city is soon attacked by the Dark Army and its powerful Cabal Warriors that the protagonists must battle.

Frendor (right) and a Cabal Warrior

They then venture into secret underground ways and confront Frendor, second-in-command of the Dark Army who leads the attack. Frendor is a very powerful and resilient enemy, little vulnerable to spells, who fights alongside two Cabal Warriors. After defeating him, Geron’s Key is found on his corpse.

Fighting their way into the caverns, the protagonists enter a labyrinth populated by two warring races, the brain-like Knowles and the slug-like Xeobs, and must side with one to destroy the others, while finding a diamond and Nathaniel's Key. (Since Nathaniel is never heard of or seen again in the entire trilogy, it is fair to assume that he was killed by the Dark Army.) Be careful, no matter the side you chose, your enemies can melt your armours. After this conflict is ended, the protagonists can finally sneak into Cimmeria.

If Scotia stole Dawn’s Key, it can be found in Cimmeria. On the first level, you need a diamond to cut open the glass globe in which Dawn is imprisoned. Dawn thanks the protagonists and teleports away to reorganize the White Army and attack the castle. (Dawn was meant to become the fourth party member, but the idea was dropped.)

King Richard is found on the second floor. Since Scotia could not dispel the force-field, she enshrouded it with a shadowy veil to prevent anyone from dispelling it. You need to place five black statuettes found in the castle around him, so that they reflect a sunbeam and dissipate the shadow, before dispelling the force-field with the four Keys and giving King Richard the Elixir. The king is too weak to go along the protagonists, who give him a weapon to escape, but he gives them his Shard of Truth and combines it with the Ruby of Truth to form the Whole Truth: the artifact that cancels the Nether Mask’s transformations. Then the protagonists can go to the third floor and settle their score with Scotia for good.

The Final Battle

Scotia's three forms during the final battle

Scotia can be confronted before saving the King, but she cannot be defeated without the Whole Truth so it is best to avoid her. Scotia first transforms into a powerful toad-like monster. When defeated, she transforms into an even mightier giant spider-like snake. When defeated again, she transforms into a beast that is flat-out invincible and the game is lost.

The protagonists must use the Whole Truth on her when she transforms to break the Nether Mask and dispel her transformation. If that did not work for the first transformation, there is two opportunities left. (When part of her body glows blue, she is about to transform.)

Die you hideous crone!

Under her human aspect, Scotia uses her magic to harm the protagonists without touching them and conjures powerful ghastly serpents. Despite this, she is not that dangerous, and if the protagonists are at a level high enough, she can be disposed of with only a few blows. No matter under what form she is fought (save from her last), she is vulnerable to the mightiest spell: Mist of Doom.

In the Other Games

Before dying, Scotia transfers what remains of the Nether Mask's magic to her son Luther, hoping that he will take over the Dark Army and avenge her. However, his shape-shifting is uncontrollable and random, and he spends the second game trying to get rid of it. It also appears that the Nether Mask is one of the last sources of the divine Ancient Magic that the evil god Belial needs to resurrect. Helped by the Draracle, Luther sets out to destroy him once and for all. Scotia appears in a vision to Luther, saying that he disappointed her for not following her footsteps.

Since the Draracle returned to the Divine Realms after Belial’s destruction, he cannot help to protect the world of the final trouble; a rift between the Physical Planes and Spiritual Planes, that causes an invasion of otherworldly creatures and threatens the worlds. Lands of Lore III features Copper LeGrey, King Richard’s nephew, whose soul was torn from his body and who sets out to find it. Copper eventually finds out that everything was caused by Jakel, the Draracle’s former servant, who refuses to see the world evolve without gods, and kills him to end the threat.